Islamic World Should Clearly Support the People of Yemen Against the Oppressors

The following is the full text of the sermons delivered on June 26, 2017 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, at the Eid ul-Fitr prayers in Imam Khomeini (r.a.) Musalla in Tehran.

First Sermon:

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Ab-al-Qassem Al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure, immaculate, chosen and infallible household – who guide the guided - especially the one remaining with Allah on earth. And greetings be upon the leaders of Muslims, those who guide the oppressed and those who support the faithful.

I would like to congratulate all you dear ones who say daily prayers, all the people of Iran and the entire Islamic Ummah on the occasion of the auspicious Eid ul-Fitr. All Muslims should be congratulated on their blessing to fast in the month of Ramadhan, and to emerge victorious out of this divine test which is a source of virtue and joy for human soul. I hope that God will accept these prayers and supplications from you and I hope that He bestows His special kindness and blessings on you.

This year's month of Ramadhan was an auspicious month for our dear people in the real sense of the word. What we saw up close was that our people displayed signs of reliance on and closeness to God in their behavior and in the ceremonies that were – there were certain groups which carried out tasks related to religious acts. The atmosphere was one of spirituality, of closeness to and reliance on God, and of Ramadhani quality in the true sense of the word.

First of all, fasting on the hottest and longest days of the year is a sign of spirituality and of psychological elation. This was visible and tangible in all parts of the country including the areas in which the temperature was very high. Everyone knew of this and everyone saw fasting youth and fasting men and women.

Secondly, the youth's participation in the religious ceremonies of this month was eye-catching. According to the reports that I have received, hundreds of warm and highly-populated meetings were held in Tehran days and nights and the main participants in those meetings were youth. This holds true for both ethics and Quranic meetings. Apart from the small meetings that were, for example, held in various neighborhoods and mosques and in different corners of the country, hundreds of big meetings were held in Tehran. Of course, people throughout the country participated in such meetings.

Another issue is about iftar meals in mosques and streets. This is a tradition that has become popular among the people for several years. They organize modest iftar meals in mosques, alleys and streets and they gave food to the people. This is a very good tradition and custom. Thankfully, this year too, it tangibly existed among the people.

Another issue is helping the prisoners who had committed accidental crimes and who needed financial help. Another issue is providing the costs for the treatment of patients. The people helped a lot. These tasks were carried out. A month of Ramadhan which passes like this for the people is an auspicious month of Ramadhan in the true sense of the word.

As for the Nights of Qadr, the Nights of Qadr were really nights of relying on God, supplicating and asking God for help. The tears that were shed, the wails that were let out and the hearts which paid attention to the Holy Essence of God are very valuable. These are things that strengthen the spiritual basis of a people and that help individuals when they take difficult paths.

And at the end of this month, Quds Day rallies were held with that magnificence and glory. In that hot weather and on the longest days of the year, the people took to the streets - some people even took their children with them – and held rallies on the streets. This great movement of the people is really a great achievement and a symbolic and historic feat. These things will remain in history as the achievements of a people. Later on, I will say a few more things in this regard.

Dear brothers, dear sisters, what you have gained in this month is a divine provision for yourself. You have gained provisions. You should preserve these provisions. You should preserve them with the continuation of this state of mind. You should not stop reciting the Holy Quran. You should definitely pay attention when saying daily prayers. These are things that should be preserved. This month was the month of asceticism and of doing the practice of paying attention to God. You should make the most of this practice. You should preserve these provisions for yourselves. I hope that you will benefit from divine satisfaction and divine mercy, God willing.

“In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

Say: He, Allah, is One.

Allah is He on Whom all depend.

He begets not, nor is He begotten.

And none is like Him” [The Holy Quran, 112].

Second Sermon:

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Ab-al-Qassem al-Mustafa Muhammad and upon his immaculate, pure and chosen household, especially upon the Commander of the Faithful, Siddiqat al-Taherah, the mistress of all women, Hassan and Hussein- the masters of the youth of paradise - Ali ibn al-Hussein Zayn al-Abidin, Muhammad ibn Ali al-Baqir, knower of the first and the last, Ja'far ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq, Musa ibn Ja'far al-Kadhim, Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha, Muhammad ibn Ali al-Jawad, Ali ibn Muhammad al-Hadi, Hassan ibn Ali al-Zaki al-Askari and Hujjat al-Qaem al-Mahdi. Greetings be upon them all. Make us be among their Shias, their supporters and their comrades in their presence and in their absence.

In this sermon, I wish to say a few things about the domestic issues of the country and a few things about the general matters of the world of Islam.

As for the domestic issues of the country, I would like to say that the dear people of Iran should be proud of the great feats that they have accomplished. You should gladden hearts. You should harbor hope in your hearts because you have carried out great tasks.

During and a short time before this auspicious month, you first of all managed to display that enthusiastic and great election [presidential elections] to the world – it was a great and magnificent achievement. Secondly, Quds Day rallies is a very great achievement. The powerful attack that the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps launched on the enemies was a big achievement as well.

As I said in the previous sermon, achievements – our personal, spiritual and religious achievements – are our spiritual provisions. They are our social provisions as well. Therefore, they should be preserved. Preserving these provisions lies in the people preserving their unity. They should preserve their unity and solidarity. They should preserve their revolutionary motivation. They should preserve – in their hearts - the movement towards revolutionary goals and ideals and they should consider this a lofty goal.

I hope that by Allah's favor, the new administration will be formed as soon as possible and that they begin to carry out the necessary tasks for the country as soon as possible. There are many great tasks ahead of us that the officials of the country should carry out with the help of the people. They should work on domestic production and the employment of youth which is among our important issues. We named this year "The Year of National Production and Employment". By Allah's favor, these tasks should be pursued in a serious way.

Attending to cultural issues is among the most important tasks. We have many cultural rifts and cracks. There are many cultural areas which can be penetrated by the enemy. Both executive organizations and the large networks of the people are responsible towards this matter. "Fire at will" means doing cultural tasks voluntarily and efficiently. What I said before means that youth, intellectuals, thinkers and determined personalities throughout the country should move the tasks – cultural tasks – forward with their own innovation. They should identify cultural rifts and work on them.

"Fire at will" does not mean adopting illegal measures, cursing, giving shallow-minded individuals - who make extravagant claims – a reason [to attack, to hatch their plots], and making the revolutionary orientation of the country pay for it. It is revolutionary forces, more than anyone else, which should look after the discipline and tranquility of the country. They should take care not to let the enemies take advantage of the conditions of the country and they should ensure that the law is observed. Primarily, these actions fall on revolutionary forces which are sympathetic and which want the country to move towards its goals.

As for the issues of the world of Islam, I should say that many wounds have been inflicted on the body of the Islamic Ummah. The issues of Yemen have inflicted a big wound on the body of the Islamic Ummah. The same is true of Syrian issues. The same is true of the various matters that exist in Islamic countries. The world of Islam should outspokenly support the people of Yemen! It should express its hatred of the oppressors and cruel individuals who attack those people in the days of the month of Ramadhan – this auspicious month. They should support the people of that country.

They should also support the people of Bahrain and the people of Kashmir. Our nation can be a source of support for this great movement of the world of Islam. As we are announcing our positions on friends and on enemies and opponents, the world of Islam too – particularly intellectuals and particularly the ulama [scholars] of the world of Islam – should follow the same method. They should adopt clear positions and make Allah the Exalted satisfied with them even if others and taghuts become dissatisfied with them.

Dear God, by the blessedness of Muhammad and his household, increase Your blessings on the Islamic Ummah on a daily basis.

Dear God, by the blessedness of Muhammad and his household, make us more familiar with our responsibilities on a daily basis.

“In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

I swear by the time,

Most surely man is in loss,

Except those who believe and do good, and enjoin on each other truth, and enjoin on each other patience” [The Holy Quran, 103].